Run Away Werewolf
by puppetxlove
Summary: My mind was racing. I couldn't breathe. This wasn't happening. He was like my brother, my best friend. There was nothing that could come between us but this. I wanted to cry, but my body wasn't working. Was this it? read&review please!
1. My Baby

**Disclaimer:** **I don't own Twilight or any of the characters, just the plot and Brenna, so far.**

* * *

"Collin, are you _coming?"_ I heard Brady call from the front of the house, irritated, "The movie's gonna be over before we even get there if you don't hurry up." His voice was louder now, as if he thought I wouldn't be able to hear him. I had the urge to remind him that we were in a three bedroom, one story house, and I was only separated from him by a wall, but I was too focused on my phone to reply. Brenna had just texted me, which was incredibly unusual unless she really wanted to tell me something. Brenna and my relationship had ended on a not-very-pretty note, and she was still upset about it. It wasn't as if I'd done anything bad, though, it was just women and the strange way they thought. I shook my head to get rid of useless thoughts, then clicked open on my phone.

'I need you here, now. Hurry.' Though I was still somewhat angry with her for, well, being angry at me for whatever I didn't do, but she thought I did do, I couldn't ignore something that sounded important. Brenna may not have been a member of the pack, but she was as close to me as any of my guy friends were, maybe even closer. If she needed me, I'd be there. 'You okay?' I punched into the phone urgently, my over-sized fingers adding random letters where they weren't supposed to be. After what felt like forever, I'd gotten the two word message right, and was out the door of my room. "Hey Brady?" I called, wondering where he'd run off to. The door was swinging on its hinges and rain was blowing through it, so I guessed that he'd already gone outside. "Brady!" I walked through the door, annoyed that I'd have to cancel my plans with him and the rest of the guys. He was already in the car, waiting. I threw it open and shouted through the noise of the rain and radio, "Change of plans, I gotta go talk to Brenna. I'll see you tomorrow?"

He stared at me in disbelief, turning the radio down so we could hear each other better, "You're kidding me, right?" I shook my head, suddenly feeling guilty for ditching him. He'd been my best friend ever since the whole werewolf thing, three long years ago. We'd gone through the change at the same time, and after that we'd been practically inseparable. In recent events, though, I'd started to spend more time on my own or with Brenna in Seattle, making it hard for me to talk to him all the time like I used to. "You're so whipped, you know that, right?" I nodded, looking away from him. I'd have to smooth things out when I got back, even if it took breaking into his room through the window. Surely, he wouldn't forgive me easily this time. We'd been planning this party for weeks, a way to welcome the new kid into the pack. Sighing, I resolved that they'd have to get over it.

"I'm sorry, okay? She needs my help, I don't know why, but I'm not about to turn her down." When his glare continued, obviously waiting for a better explanation, I started to shake. All of the sudden, I wanted to punch him in the face. It wasn't my fault I'd met her, or fallen in love with her. And it wasn't my fault that she dumped me, either. He didn't have to make it harder, "Listen, she's as much my best friend as you are! Don't get all pissed at me like you always do, I don't need any more damn drama in my life than there already is." I wasn't yelling so he could hear me now, I was just mad.

"Whatever. G'bye." He replied, hitting the gas and sending me flying across the yard. I landed flat on my back, after doing a couple of somersaults. My side hurt like hell, and my arm felt broken. I looked up just in time to see him disappear around the corner of the cliffs, giving me the finger out the window. I wanted to morph and chase after him, but I could hardly lift my head.

"Bastard.." I muttered under my breath, re-evaluating my plan to make-up with him. Maybe we were farther apart than I'd thought. I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket. Without thinking, I moved my wounded arm, only to immediately flinch back and yelp in pain. God, I hated that guy. With my uninjured arm, I carefully slid the small piece of metal out of my pocket. The screen was cracked, but I could still read the message. 'No, not really. Can you please get your ass over here?' Clenching my teeth as tightly as I could, I sat up despite my body screaming at me to stop. I'd be better within a few hours, but from the sound of it, I didn't have that much time to lose.

Finally, I managed to stand up, slipping my cell phone and jeans into the small leather pouch attached to my ankle. Morphing was harder than I thought it'd be; all I could do was try not to pay attention to the agony that was coursing through my whole left side. Once I was a wolf, it felt slightly better so I started to run, testing my limits. It hurt, but not nearly bad enough to slow me down. I avoided thinking about it as much as I could, but of course, my mind always drifted back to it sooner or later. After a while, I noticed that I wasn't alone.

_Collin? Are you alright?_ The voice asked. It took me a moment to figure out who it was, as in my wishful thinking I'd mistaken it for Brady. _It's Kayne, you idiot. What happened to you? You sound like you're in pain._ Kayne. He was the newest one to change, none of us were really used to him yet. He was alright, though, even if he dragged his girlfriend along everywhere he went. _Hey! At least I don't ditch my best friends, my __**pack,**__ to hang out with some chick that I'm not even going out with._

_Shut up, Kayne. You don't want me to come back and whoop your ass, do you? Because I'm really close to losing it right now. _I hadn't meant to sound so pissed, but with everything that was going on, all I wanted to do was tear up a bloodsucker or something. It sucked, feeling so torn between the people who were practically your family, and your best friend. It didn't help that she lived at least a thirty minute's run away, and hours in a car.

_Is that you're way of saying sorry? Well, I forgive you, don't worry. _An image of me beating the crap out of the 14 year old flashed in my brain, and I heard him chuckle his wolfie chuckle. The fantasy was cut off abruptly by a jolt of pain in my left leg. I fell, rolling for a few seconds before coming to a complete stop. _Woah! Collin, are you okay? Maybe you should come home and let Emily have a look at you. What happened?_

_I'm fine. _I couldn't move for a minute or two, and listened to Kayne's nagging in silence while I gathered every ounce of strength I had together. I was only about ten minutes away from Seattle, then another twenty minutes from Brenna's house, as I couldn't be in my wolf form in a big city like that. With a great amount of effort, I lifted myself and started to limp towards my destination.

_Seriously, what the hell happened to you? When Sam finds out he'll be pissed. He just gave us the whole 'fighting within the pack doesn't do any good, and if I see it again there will be consequences' lecture. Of course, Emily was behind it, but she'll make him go through with it. _He was starting to get annoying. I didn't know whether to ignore him and let him continue or tell him so he'd leave me alone. _Tell me! I'm really considering coming after you right now. Is that what you want? Or maybe I'll send Brady._

_Do that, and I'll rip you limb from limb. _He seemed surprised, but stayed silent for a second, glad that I had spoken. He came upon a window, Sam's, and through his sight I saw Brady, laughing on the couch. He was really going to get him. _Fine! It was Brady. I told him I had to go see Brenna and he flipped. No big deal, I'll be fine in like an hour._ I paused for a second, and then added,_ Is the asshole really laughing? He practically crippled me, and he's __**laughing**__?! _If I hadn't been in wolf form already, I would have been too angry to keep being human.

Kayne seemed shocked that Brady had gone so far as to hurt me, it never came to that between us. We were best friends, weren't we? _Yeah, he's laughing. I think Leah said something funny. _He stayed so quiet for a few minutes that I thought he was finally out of my head. He proved me wrong, though. _Why are you going to Brenna's? I thought you two broke up… again._

_You know, you suck at being comforting._ He chuckled again, and I managed a laugh too, which was cut off abruptly when I realized I'd only walked a couple of yards since I'd fallen. _Dammit, it's going to take me hours to get there! I hate Brady so much, I could literally tear his head off. Do you think Sam would be mad?_ Kayne laughed. I would have joined him, but my leg was getting worse and it was taking everything I had not to scream. Or howl. Or whatever wolves did when they were in pain. I whimpered slightly. _Hey, I'll be right back, okay? I gotta check my phone._

Pain seared throughout my body as I became human once again, my broken bone stretching and contorting to fit my human figure. I actually did scream this time, falling against a tree and nearly blacking out. Why was I feeling worse, not better? With a sigh, I grabbed my phone from the leather pouch and flipped it open. One new message. 'Please hurry, my parents are going to be home in less than two hours. Don't drive, run.' I shook my head softly, punching in a distorted reply, 'Sorry, Brady and I had a fight, I'm doing the best I can.' I didn't want her to worry, but I wanted her to know I was going to take a little longer than I'd expected. In a few seconds I was a wolf again. It hurt a lot less like this.

_You never told me why you were going to Brenna's._ Kayne immediately started talking once he sensed my presence. I didn't know if I'd be able to reply, it was starting to hurt too badly. I tried to run, but kept stumbling and falling. The earthy scent of the woods was starting to disappear though, something I normally dreaded but was now overjoyed about. _Dude, you need to stop walking. You're gonna kill yourself._

_I'll be fine. Tell Sam and I'll make your life a living hell, got that?_ He mentally gave in. Being much younger than me and new to the pack, he was in no place to try to disagree with me. _Why are you running, anyways?_ I asked, trying to distract myself.

_Oh, umm._ I realized he was keeping his thoughts carefully shielded. _Girl trouble. It's no big deal, it'll blow over. _I could tell, though, that he wasn't so sure of himself. There was a lingering sense of hope in his mind, but I couldn't tell what for. _Stop searching me! I don't want to be at the party either, okay? I just want to be alone. You should understand._

I stopped digging through his mind. Not because he was right, but because I was nearing Seattle and had to change. _See ya, new kid. Hope you feel better._ Before I could get fully morphed, a 'be careful!' echoed in my mind. I sighed, hoping I'd be able to make it all the way across town to Brenna's house. An idea hit me, something I should have thought of earlier. I checked how much money I had in my pouch. $189.00. That was more than enough to rent a cab. Once I got to the main roads, I stepped out into traffic in front of a yellow car. "I need a cab." I said loudly, moving around to his window. The guy looked at me with a horrified look in his eye. Panicking, I checked to make sure I'd put my pants on before I'd come into town, but they were securely hanging around my waist. What was this freak staring at?

He rolled down the window, "What you need is an ambulance, buddy, what happened to you?" At first I didn't understand, but once I checked myself in the faint reflection the side of the car cast of me, I realized what he meant. My arm was not only broken, but bent badly out of shape, twisted in a very awkward position. My whole side was bruised and there were scratches covering most of my back and front. To top it all of, there was blood soaking through my jeans in immense quantity.

"Shit," I muttered softly, opening the cab door. "Listen, I'm fine. Do you know where Pine Street is? Near Grove Park, I think." The driver nodded. My voice was strained. If this didn't start healing pretty quickly, I was going to have a hard time getting home. And what would Brenna think, seeing me all beaten up like this? I started to reach for my phone, but was interrupted by the cab driver, throwing a plastic bag in the back towards me. I looked up at him, confused.

"Put your leg in it, I don't want blood all over my seats." He looked irritated that I'd chosen his particular cab to dirty up, but obviously couldn't have turned me down. I was pretty much bleeding out. "Listen, kid, I'm gonna speed to get you wherever you're going, cause I want you out. No offense. If I get pulled over, you tell him you need help fast, got it?" I nodded, not realizing that he couldn't see me, so he repeated, "Got it?"

"Oh, yeah, sure." After I'd finished fully covering my leg, I took out my phone. I had a missed call and a text, but I read the new message first. 'Brady? I thought you guys had things worked out. I hope it wasn't my fault. Are you hurt? I'm calling you." I could tell that we were almost there, so I didn't bother calling her back. She didn't need to worry about me, I'd be fine. Whatever she had to tell me had better be pretty damn important, though. If I went through all this grief for nothing, I would not be happy.

I must have zoned out or fallen asleep, because the next thing I heard was, "Kid. Kid! We're here, pay up." I looked up and noticed that we were at Brenna's house. I saw a curtain flicker open and closed, and realized that she'd be out within seconds. "Forty bucks." I threw two twenties at him and stumbled out of the car, not removing the trash bag from my leg. It was probably better she didn't see me in all my glory, my broken arm was enough.

The door opened and Brenna was running towards me, arms extended. "Collin! Oh my gosh, Collin!" She cried, wrapping me in a tight hug. I flinched, but didn't tell her how much it hurt to be touched. I hadn't felt her arms around me in so long; it felt too nice to mess up. In seconds, she let go and backed up. "Oh, I'm sorry, you must be in pain!" She gasped again, staring at my arm, "He did this to you? How could he? If I had your werewolf-y powers, I'd kick his butt." She stood there, gazing at me. I wanted to tell her it was all okay, there was no need to worry, but I knew she wouldn't have any of it.

"Come on, Bren, let's get you inside. You'll get sick." She looked at me like I was crazy, but didn't say anything. She probably didn't want to argue with the crippled guy. I limped behind her until she realized I was having a hard time walking, and attempted to help support me. Though it wasn't really any help, I pretended it was. There was no harm in giving her what she wanted when it was no trouble for me, besides the whole pain thing.

Once we were inside, she led me into the back where her room was. I was grateful that she'd ended up with the only room on the bottom floor, while everyone else's rooms were upstairs. I wouldn't have been able to make it up there. "Tell me what happened." She demanded as soon I was laying on her bed. She sat down on the edge, staring at me expectantly.

I shook my head. "Listen, I don't want to talk about it, alright? I'll live; he's great, let's move on." She glared at me, as if she wanted to slap me, though I knew she wouldn't. I was so sick of fighting I was about to puke. When I got back, I'd apologize, and if he didn't want to accept I'd give him time and let him get over it. I was officially done with this whole make-me-choose thing. If I could get here with a horribly deformed arm and horribly bloody leg while Kayne was annoying whatever energy was left out of me, I could keep both friends.

"You're kidding me, right? This guy could have killed you. He's supposed to be your best friend, so why doesn't he act like it?" I resisted the urge to tell her it was because of her, because I hadn't been acting like a best friend, but instead I gave her a glare. It was the kind that said 'just drop it', and she did so without a protest. "I'm getting you ice and a wash cloth, I'll be right back." She stood up to walk out the door.

"When you get back, you're telling me whatever you called me over here for, okay?" A nervous fear crept over her features, and she didn't reply. After she was out of the room, I let out a long sigh. She didn't look injured or hurt, so it didn't have anything to do with that. So what was so important that she'd called me over when I already had plans? I was curious now. After what seemed like ages she returned, a pathetic smile on her face. "So what is it?"

She didn't reply at first, only dabbing the soapy washcloth on my torn up skin. It stung, but I wasn't about to cry like a baby. I focused on her eyes instead, that were shifting quickly, as if she had no idea what to say. "You're going to be mad." She whispered, a tear dripping down her face. I couldn't stand to see her hurt like this, I wanted to wrap her up in a huge bear hug and never let go. I couldn't exactly get up, though, so I stayed where I was. "Really, really mad." Her voice was barely a breath.

"How bad could it be?" I asked, partially to myself, after a long pause. It wasn't awkward, though. That was one of the amazing things about us, things were never awkward. She continued to dab at my stomach with the cloth, touching a few particularly tender spots. I tensed my muscles, hoping she'd spit it out already so I could think about something else. When she didn't reply, I started to get nervous myself, "Come on, Rain, I promise you I won't blow up.." Rain was the nickname that only I called her. It was her middle name, and sort of an inside thing.

She shook her head, and looked into my eyes. "I'm scared." By now multiple tears were streaming down her face, and she wasn't one to cry easily. I'd only seen her do it once before, and that was when her father died, so she had a very good reason. It must have been serious. I reached up and wiped them away with my thumb.

"Shh, you're okay." She set the rag down as I sat up, ignoring the pain, and wrapped my good arm around her. I let her lean into me, crying softly. "I won't let anything hurt you, I promise. Shhh." I stroked her hair gently, trying to calm her down. After a few moments, I kissed her forehead and held her chin so that she was looking at me, "Please, tell me. I don't think I could be mad at you if I tried, even if I did have the energy." She reached up and removed my hand from her face, intertwining our fingers.

"Collin…" She started, looking me square in the eyes. Hers were so beautiful. I wished more than anything that she was mine; that I'd imprinted on her, but I hadn't. And she didn't feel safe around me, knowing that at any moment I could find my soul mate and leave her in the dust. Sometimes I hated being a shape-shifter. "I'm pregnant." These were not the words I'd expected to hear. I let go of her hand in shock, as if she'd been burning me with it. She started to cry again, and once again I hugged her, resting my chin on her head.

"How?.." I whispered. We'd never gone so far as to… It couldn't have been mine. There was no way in hell it was. All we'd done is kissed, nothing more than that. We were going to wait… We hadn't… My thoughts were a mess, as jumbled and confused as my splintered bones. "It's not mine." I finally said, not as a question. She sobbed harder, her tears falling against my shoulder.

"I'm sorry… I'm so, so sorry." She cried, wrapping her arms around me to confirm my accusation. "I never deserved someone as good as you. It wasn't your fault. I'm sorry. I couldn't do it." So that had been it. There had never been any worry about who I was going to imprint on, it was all just a cover up. She'd been cheating on me. For some reason, I wasn't mad at her. It almost seemed like something I would have expected. I started shaking softly, thinking of the miserable piece of trash that had taken her, _my_ Brenna. If I ever got my hands on him, I'd wring his filthy neck before he could even think about running.

I didn't ask who, I didn't ask why. There was no reason to add to her pain. She was hurt, and she'd called me to help her, to sit with her while she cried, not him. I don't know if it was because she loved me, or because he'd left her, but I didn't care. I couldn't leave her like this. I couldn't even be angry. She was beautiful, and I really was whipped. And for whatever reason, I didn't mind.

I felt a slow tear roll down my face as I kissed her head again. "It's okay, Rain. Shhh. I love you, no matter whose baby it is. I love you." She looked up at me, her tears stopping. The sadness in her dark green eyes was still there, lingering behind a layer of pure surprise, as if to say 'really?'. I nodded at her unspoken question, "I really do." This sent her into another round of tears. Then she glanced up at me once again, tears still rolling down her cheeks.

"You are the most amazing person I've met in my entire life." She choked out, breathing heavily from her sobs, "And I love you too."

* * *

**Hey, guys! This is a new story that I wrote while I was supposed to be doing test reviews, so if I fail, I blame you. **

**If you've read my other story, What are you running from?, this is kind of a branch off of that. Collin is actually not part of the pack in that story, nor are his sons or daughters, and this is the story of why. When I was figuring out what Raidyn's friend and the new pack would be like, I got really into this and I couldn't stop, heh.  
**

**So I hope you guys like it! Review with questions, comments, and whatever else! I was tempted to leave y'all with a cliff hanger, but I was having too much fun writing it, so I didn't. Consider yourselves lucky. (:  
**


	2. I'm Scared

**Disclaimer: I don't own Collin or Brady or any werewolfyness.**

* * *

I couldn't tell whether we'd been laying here for minutes or hours. Either way, I didn't want to move. Her head was resting on my bare chest, the skin to skin contact making my head spin. My extra sensitive hearing found her steady heartbeat and wouldn't let go, feeding it like a string of notes through my ears. Every once and a while she'd start to cry again, and I'd stroke her hair and kiss her forehead. I wished we never had to get up, to think about what we were going to do next. I wasn't planning on doing anything with my life, besides be a member of the pack and raise a family, so it would be easy for me to help her with him. But what about her? She was too smart to be stuck as a mother, never able to follow her dreams. She deserved to be out there, doing whatever it was she wanted to do.

Whoever did this to her would go to hell. I'd see to it personally, if I had to. Closing my eyes and counting to ten, my shaking hands calmed slightly. Being so out of control was about to drive me over the edge. The fact that I could hurt an innocent person who may have made me mad haunted me every time I saw the people I loved. Taking in a large breath, I was back to normal, running my hands through Brenna's soft blonde hair. She looked up at me and smiled feebly, and opened her mouth to speak. I wanted to tell her to keep quiet, but figured she might get mad. "What time is it?" She asked quietly, as if she realized how fragile the silence was.

I carefully reached behind me and felt around on the bedside table, finding what felt like a cell phone. I glanced at it then put it back as gently as I could. "It's seven thirty. Why?" I realized suddenly that her parents would probably be coming home soon. And when they saw me, they would probably go into hysterics. Either that, or they'd freak out about my arm and insist that I let them take me to a hospital, and _then_, once my arm was fixed, they'd attempt to break it again in their… well, hysterics.

"Shit, that late!?" She nearly shouted, jumping out of her bed abruptly. "You have to leave, they'll be so mad!" I didn't move, my eyes begging her to come back for just a little bit. She grabbed a squishy feather pillow off of her chair and hit my face with it, being sure to avoid my bruised and broken body parts. "Get up! I can't afford for them to be mad at me… Then how will I find a good time to tell them about…" She trailed off, but I knew where she'd been going. She hadn't told them yet? I made a mental note to ask her about it later.

"There's still so much we need to talk about, though.." My voice was barely a whisper, and I cursed myself for being so emotional. What she needed was someone strong, someone who could cheer her up, "Couldn't you hide me in your closet or something?" I said in an effort to lighten the depressing mood. She laughed, wrapping her arms around me in a hug, more tame than her other's so as not to hurt me. I hugged her back until she broke away, a smile spreading across her face.

"I can do even better than my closet!" I grinned, wondering what she was on about, but also excited that I didn't have to leave. Besides, how was I supposed to get home? It wasn't as if I could walk. Deciding to cross that bridge when I came to it, I gave her a questioning look, hoping she'd catch on and explain. "My friend Taylor is outta town, and I have her key. She wanted me to feed her cat for her, water her plants, that kind of stuff. I can tell my mom I'm going to Katie's and we can go there."

"You are a genius." I leaned down and kissed her lightly on the lips, unsure whether she still wanted me to do anything like that. Pulling away and backing up slightly, I studied her face. Her eyes sparkled and her lips curled upwards slightly, so I assumed she didn't mind. We stood quietly for a moment, and after grabbing her hand I took a agonizing step towards the door, "Shall we?" She nodded, following me through the door. I heard her punch numbers into her phone, and could even hear it ringing with my annoyingly sensitive werewolf ears.

After three or four 'brriiingg's, her mother answered, sounding irritated. "Mom? Hey, I'm gonna go to Katie's for a little bit, alright?" She asked nervously, hoping her mother's mood wouldn't ruin our clever plan. I wasn't paying attention to the reply, but heard Brenna's. "She's upset, mom, it's kind of important. Yeah, you could say it's boy trouble." I looked back and saw a frown attack her delicate features, "Please? I promise to be back by nine to make dinner for you and the boys. You can go home and let them take a nap, then I'll wake them up when I get home." She paused for a moment, listening. We were almost to the front door now, but I was still limping. My leg was healing slowly, but it didn't feel like my arm was healing at all. Could anything else go wrong? _Dammit_, I thought angrily, _I hope I didn't just jinx it._ "Okay, thanks mom! I'll talk to you later!" Her phone flipped shut and she placed her focus on me once again. "Yes! It worked! Now I just gotta text Katie and tell her if my mom calls to cover for me."

After a few more buttons being punched, she ran up next to me. "All set?" I asked, and she answered with a nod. "Are you going to drive? I don't think I can, in case you hadn't noticed." She chuckled grimly, grabbing the keys off a hook on the wall before she stepped out into the cold. I made it to the car with a great deal of suffering, and we rode in silence. I drifted off into a daydream of a little russet-colored baby boy calling me daddy. In every fantasy I'd had of my future family, Brenna had never been included. I felt guilty at the thought, but I couldn't help it. Werewolves imprinted to find their soulmates, simple as that, which meant that Brenna and I weren't meant to end up together. Unless I wasn't going to imprint?

At first the pack had thought that imprinting was something rare that only happened to a few, but after a couple years they realized that it was the other way around. Almost the whole pack had imprinted, even one of the newer wolves. No matter how much I wished it wasn't, though, it was the truth. After what must have been only a few minutes, I was thrown out of my own trance by Brenna's voice, "Collin? Collin, we're here." She said loudly, tapping my shoulder. Once I looked up at her, she hopped out of the car and climbed around to my side. It seemed mixed up, the girl opening the door for the guy, but it made me feel better that she was only doing it because I was hurt. After I'd gotten out, she supported as much of my weight a she could and led me through the door.

It was small, cozy, three bedroom house, sort of reminding me of my own. It was more open, though, the dining room, kitchen, and dining room all connected. There was a little hallway off to the side which must have led to the bedrooms. The colors were bright, like turquoise and lime green, and big bold shapes were scattered throughout the designs. She led me to the couch and I collapsed onto it, while she sat on the armrest above my head. "Have you told you're parents yet?" I asked quietly, almost afraid to bring up the subject again. I had half a mind to just forget about it, pretend it wasn't happening, but that wasn't what would help her. I glanced up to see her shaking her head. "Why?"

It took her a moment to answer. "They'll be so disappointed. And I can't bear to see them anymore stressed than the already are." She started to play with thin strands of my hair, twisting them around her finger. I couldn't tell whether she was doing it so that I couldn't see her face, but I didn't pull away. "It's not easy, raising five kids. Especially when four of them are obnoxious little boys. What are they gonna do when they find out they'll play a part in raising a sixth?" I could tell she was crying, but not enough to make it hard for her to talk. It was one of her silent cries. I wondered if it was the same way with Sam and Emily, they were the pack's guardians, practically our parents. Or maybe my mom, but my three brothers were already off at college. It couldn't have been as hard with them so spread out. Brenna's youngest brothers were both nine months old, twins, followed by another almost two year old, then a five year old. And then there was Brenna, who was sixteen, left with the role of mother when her parents weren't there. Luckily, they all went to the Aidan, the oldest brother's, soccer games and school activities, which gave Brenna some alone time.

"They might be mad at first, but they'll get over it. And they can deal with the boys on their own, can't they?" I thought about this for a moment. Her father was a pilot and wasn't home most of the time, while their mother stayed home or went out with friends all the time. If she couldn't make time in her schedule to take care of her own kids, there was a problem. "And you can raise the baby. Plus, you'll always have me, you know that right?" This made her smile a little.

"You'll really help me take care of a baby that's… not yours?" My good hand's fist clenched and my teeth were grinding together. Once again, I felt the urge to tear whoever it was apart, shred him to pieces with my big wolf teeth. I wanted him to hurt, to feel the pain that Brenna was, emotionally and physically. I wanted him to feel _my_ pain. He was the reason I had to ditch Brady, the reason I'd limped across hundreds of miles. "I'm sorry," She whispered when she saw my reaction.

"No, it's not you. Of course I will. He's a part of you, and I love you. It doesn't matter who else is in the picture." I frowned, another problem forming in my brain, "Does _he_ know?" I said the word he like a dirty word, and immediately wished I knew his name. "Who is this guy, anyways?" She started to cry again, and I regretted sounding angry.

"No.. h-he's an asshole. I d-don't want him to b-be a part of m-my baby's l-life." She'd started to shake, but not from anger like I had been. This was something else. I removed her hand from her hair and looked up at her, noticing that she wasn't cold or mad, she was _afraid._ "Just d-drop it, please. I don't want t-to think about h-him." My hands started to shake again as I ran through the possibilities in my head.

"Did he hurt you?" I tried to keep my voice level, not let it crack like it wanted to. It was also hard to keep it low, and not start shouting. If he'd laid a hand on my girl, especially when she had actually been my girl, I would literally kill him. I stared at her, waiting for a reply. At first she stared back, trying to be bold, but after a few seconds she looked away and started to sob again. "Tell me his name now, Brenna." It wasn't as if I'd do anything if she didn't, there was nothing I _could_ do, but I'd find out anyways. And when I did, this guy was going to regret ever being born.

"N-no." She breathed, still not looking me in the eye. I started to shake, and no amount of counting could help me now. Once she realized what was happening, her eyes grew wide. "Shh, Collin. It was a g-guy named Tyler, okay? You d-don't know him. I'm fine, though, I'm f-fine now." She stroked my head as if to pet me. "P-please, don't get all worked up over it. I'm t-the one who should b-be worried about y-you. Calm down, baby." She spoke softly, as gently as she could. I closed my eyes and breathed deeply, trying to cool it, if only for her. She'd been through enough lately, and so had I. No reason to add to my list of many things.

Once I'd composed myself, I decided to change the subject. "You need to tell your parents soon." Still sobbing, she nodded. Poor thing, she looked so helpless. I swung my leg over the side of the cushion and pulled her down next to me. I put my good arm around her shoulder. This way, I could comfort her and see her more easily while we talked. After a few minutes, she was all out of tears and looked up at me.

"I'll tell them tomorrow." I sighed, knowing how worried she must be. I didn't have a sister, so I didn't know much about the overprotective-ness of parents, but I would make sure they didn't make the situation worse, even if it meant kidnapping her and letting her stay with me. "Collin?" She asked, and I gave her my undivided attention. Once she was sure I was listening, she went on, "Could I stay with you tomorrow night and the night after? I don't want to be here while they're discussing my… fate." She muttered, looking at her hands.

"Of course." I nodded, not knowing if this was the best idea, but liking it. We'd had sleepovers all the time when we were little kids, but not so much anymore. Back then, it was always so crowded with my family of five huge guys, and one girl, but with my dad gone, all my brothers off to live their lives, and my mom working overtime and staying over at her new boyfriend's house most nights, it got pretty lonely. "So.." I muttered, hardly knowing what to say, "What now?"

She was shaking her head again, just barely. "I don't know.. I really don't know." Feeling horrible for her, I grabbed her hand and started to trace circles around the back of it, struggling not to think about this guy, Tyler, the one who'd hurt her who knows how badly. "What will they say when I tell them who's it is? They'll think I'm such a slut." Her voice died out towards the end, as if she didn't even want to think this word. "I _am_ such a slut." She slipped her hand out of mind and wrapped them around herself tightly.

"No. You're not." I said definitively, hoping to convince her. My Brenna was no whore, the guy was the one at fault. I may not have known what had happened exactly, but she would never have given herself to this guy without being severely drunk, out of her mind, or.. I didn't even want to consider that possibility. Something _had_ happened, but I would let her open up to me at her own pace. There was no way I was going to force something out of her when she was already this upset. "How far along are you?" I used words I'd once heard my mom saying to my pregnant aunt. It seemed there was specific ways to ask people who were giving birth about their pregnancy, like pregnant-people-talk.

Brenna half-smiled at my attempt to sound sophisticated. "About five months now, I think. Maybe a little less." I gasped. People were only pregnant for nine months. That meant it was less than half a year away. How was it not showing? "I know, you wouldn't be able to guess, right? I looked it up online. 'How to hide a pregnancy.' Seriously, like a million things came up. The whole baggy shirt and baby doll shirt idea really helped, and plus, I've hardly started showing, see?" She lifted up her shirt to reveal a slightly bulging tummy. "It helps that I'm tall and athletic, I guess. I think he must be shy or really tiny or something, because when my mom had my brothers she had a gigantic belly, I remember. Isn't that strange?" She almost sounded excited now, as if this was something she wanted. And in a way, I guess it was. She'd always talked about having children at a young-ish age, and getting married early, maybe she hadn't dreamt about it happening like this, but so what? This was her baby.

"Are you sure he's alright?" I asked, wondering if she'd considered the possibility that there was something wrong with it. "I mean, I've never heard of someone going so long without showing much. Have you seen a doctor yet? He could be sick." She looked at me like I'd just punched her in the gut, which would be particularly horrible at present. "You should really see a doctor.. for all that pre-natal care and stuff."

She relaxed a bit a weak smile played across her lips. "Of course I've seen a doctor, silly. Not my regular one though, he might have told my mom. I saw one named Doctor King, she's one of the specialized people. Really nice, too. My baby's perfectly healthy and everything, I've checked. She said it's just because of the position he's in or something, and cause he's a relatively small kiddo." I let out a sigh of relief, half for the baby, and half because Brenna was back to her old self again. Her eyes were still red and swollen, but she was becoming less sniffly and her smile was almost full-fledged now.

"So your sure it's a boy, then?" I asked her, tilting my head to one side. Part of me wanted it to be a boy, some kid I could take on the reservation who could wrestle with the other kids there, and play soccer and baseball and run, but some other, foreign part of me wanted it to be a girl. Some delicate little baby that I could protect, and beat up any boy who came near her. I almost started to think aloud, but reconsidered, not wanting Brenna to think that I was over-eager or something.

"No.." She trailed off. I thought back to my aunt being pregnant, remember how I'd have to sit around and listen to them talk about it. I'd only been thirteen, and I honestly couldn't have cared less, but now I tried to dig up all the info I could. When could you find out the sex of the kid? Four months? Or was it six? No matter how much I rattled my brain, I couldn't come up with a definite answer. "I was sort of hoping you'd come with me for that one." She murmured, holding my hand tightly, as if she thought I'd say no.

I smiled, incredibly glad that she'd asked me to, "I'd love to." I leaned over and kissed her again, this time on the lips, but just a peck. I didn't want to scare her away or anything. Before I could say anything else, she wrapped her arms around my neck and started kissing me back, more passionately than before. Confused, but not about to complain, I slid my hands through her hair and enjoyed every moment of it. Finally, when both of us could hardly breathe, she pulled away. "What was that?" I asked after a few moments of silents.

She didn't speak for a moment, her lips turned upwards in a soft smile, "Thank you so much." She whispered, kissing me again on the cheek. I returned her gratefulness with a wide grin, as if to say 'You're welcome,'. Suddenly, my phone started to ring in my pocket. With a groan, I pulled it out, glancing at the screen. It was Brady. I glared at the phone for a minute, not knowing what to do.

Finally, I pressed the little green phone and held it to my ear. All I needed to say was three words, then I'd hang up. I was not in the mood for his apologies, or not apologies, right now. "Go to hell." I said, my voice harsh and rough. I flipped it shut again, shoving it into my pocket angrily. I looked over at the worried face of Brenna, and shook my head so she'd know to leave it alone. My hands had started to shake again. Cursing inwardly, I listened to my phone beep once or twice. I took it out of my pocket again, flipping it open, and read the new message. 'Are you okay?' Brady again.. I swear, next time I see his ugly face.. I let my thoughts end there, so I wouldn't be forced to change. Why wasn't my damn arm healing, anyways? It never takes this long, even with a severe break. With a sigh, I glanced at the time before putting the cell away again. "It's almost nine." I muttered reluctantly, not wanting her to leave. "You should probably get going."

"Yeah." She said, obviously not wanting to, "We've got a few minutes more though.. How about we brainstorm some names?" Her eyes twinkled as she said it, and I couldn't refuse, so I nodded. "Hmm.. Let's see.. Noah, Cole, Andrew, Thomas, Simon, Johnny, Reeve, Jayden, Quinn, Jace.." As she ran off the boy names floating around in her head, I picked out the ones I liked.

"Quinn is nice.. And Reeve and Jayden. Cole is pretty neat too. I like Noah a lot... Not Johnny, Thomas, Simon or Andrew, though. They sound too.. ordinary, ya' know?" She nodded in agreement, playing with my fingers in her lap for a moment, then looking up at me expectantly. "Umm, how about.." I searched my mind for a baby name, "Serena, or Bree? Maybe Abigail." I named the first few that came to mind, though I really did like Serena. It had a moon-ish ring to it, which was slightly ironic, with me being a werewolf and all. Then again, those myths weren't true.

"I like those. Not Abigail, though. Too much like Thomas and Simon." She smiled at me, clasping my hand tighter than before. "Collin?" I looked up instantly, staring into her eyes intently. "I'm scared." Those two words were enough to explain everything, and he wrapped her in a big bear-hug, hoping his warmth would soothe her. "It's just all happening so fast. And it's gonna hurt, really bad, I just know it. And I want it to be healthy and beautiful, and I want to be able to take care of him. But what if I can't? What if he's too much for me? I'm only sixteen, Collin. I won't be able to do anything else, ever. This will be it for me, the end of school, of everything. And what if you leave?.. I don't ever want you to go away, Collin." She was crying again, and I wanted to hold her forever.

"Shh, don't worry." I murmured, rubbing her back softly, "It's all going to be okay. I'm here, alright? I'm not going to leave you ever. You have to trust me. You can be whatever you want to be, Bren. I'll take care of him while you go off to college. I'll do whatever it takes. And the baby will be fine, and you'll be fine, and we'll be like... a family." I said the last word softly, hoping she wouldn't reject the idea. She still had other options, of course, but Brenna was strongly against abortion, and it was hard to imagine her giving her baby, her own DNA, to some other couple, no matter if it was for the best or not.

She pulled away, wiping her tears. I kissed her again, our lips moving together perfectly. I suddenly had the image of her body moving with some other guy's in the same way, and had to break the embrace. She looked shocked for a moment, but nodded as if she understood, though there was no way she could. "We should get going. I'll drive you to the edge of the woods, okay?"

* * *

**Hey guys! This chapter's kinda fluff, I guess. I dunno. Sorry it's not longer or anything, but I gotta go to church and I really wanted to post it right now, hah. Next one should be up soon!!**

**REVIEW REVIEW ****REVIEW REVIEW ****REVIEW REVIEW ****REVIEW REVIEW ****REVIEW REVIEW ****REVIEW REVIEW ****REVIEW REVIEW ****REVIEW REVIEW ****REVIEW REVIEW ****REVIEW REVIEW ****REVIEW REVIEW ****REVIEW REVIEW ****REVIEW REVIEW ****REVIEW REVIEW!!**

**I'll be your best frienddd. (:  
**


	3. Stranded

I limped helplessly into the forest, having given up on trying to walk normally. Brenna was gone, she'd already driven away, so there was no one to pretend for. She had to think I was strong, that I didn't need help. I had to be her rock. My eyes closed tightly as I tried to focus on something other than the pain, which was now excruciating. In fact, it was surprising that I was still conscious, let alone walking. Sure, I was a super strong literally beastly guy, but that didn't mean I was invincible. After tonight, I'd sure as hell remember that.

As a a swift stab of pain spread throughout my leg, I lost my balance and fell to the floor, everything suddenly hurting a thousand times more than it had before. I was morphing. God, no. I clenched my teeth and tried to resist releasing the howl of pain that was bubbling in my throat; Seattle was still too near for me to give myself away like that. Animal control would be out here in thirty minutes or less, and I honestly wasn't sure I'd even last that long. Suddenly, there was another voice in my head. Great, just what I needed, company. And Kayne, at that._ 'Collin? Where the hell have you been, you moron? Sam's been looking for you for hours. What were you doing over there?'_ I tried to ignore the innuendo, and focused on the fact that Sam was probably going to finish off what was left of me if I went back anyways. Not a very good distraction from the pain. I grimaced as I shifted my leg into a more comfortable position, if you could even call it that. _'Woah. Are you okay?'_

I let a low growl slip through my teeth. When someone was not moving, and in so much pain that they can hardly think, they're usually not okay. _'Figure it out.'_ My teeth bit down hard to hold in the yelp as I crawled closer to the shelter of a tree, hoping to escape the annoying pelt of the rain. Thank god for my one oh eight temperature, or I'd probably be frozen by now. Suddenly, there was the presence of another wolf in my thoughts. Sam. His thoughts were lined with rage, most likely directed toward me, and very, very loud.

_'Collin, how nice of you to come back to us.'_ He thought icily. I was glad I couldn't see his face right then, it would have been murderous. My own thoughts were starting to scramble and fade, making it harder for me to stay awake. I knew I needed to, though. There was no way they could find me if I passed out out here in the middle of no where, with the rain erasing every hint of my scent. Perfect day for this to happen, right?

Thinking coherent words took a great amount of effort. _'Well I won't be here for long if I don't get help pretty damn fast.'_ That made me wonder how true that statement was. I was supposed to be invincible, right? The only thing that could kill me was a vampire. And I hadn't seen a vampire in a while, so why was I practically dying out here? Maybe I was just being over dramatic, whiny. Maybe it wasn't so bad after all.

_'Or maybe it is. Where are you?'_ I honestly had no idea. It couldn't be too far from Seattle, what with my leg hindering my speed, but I hadn't exactly paid attention to direction. For all I knew, I could have gone the wrong way completely. I closed my eyes, trying to gather some sort of memory, but that only led to my exhaustion nearly preventing me from opening them again, so I decided I shouldn't try that again. '_The others should be here in a moment.'_ Here, as in here, where I am? Or here as in my thoughts? _'Your thoughts.'_ I didn't want them to see my like this. Especially Brady, but it didn't exactly seem like I had a choice, so I winced in pain and attempted to squirm more under the tree.

_'Holy shit._' Well, it looked like Embry and Quil had joined us. My vision blurred as I lifted my head to get a better look at my surroundings, to give them some idea of where I was. My gaze must have drifted over my arm, or rather front leg, because his thoughts grew tense. _'Look at your leg again.'_ Seeing it again made it feel like I'd torn a bandaid off and it was a new wound. A soft whimper escaped my lips, ignoring my attempts to hold it back. All of this over some stupid movie that I wouldn't be able to watch. What an asshole.

_'Brady did this?'_ Sam's thoughts had gone quiet, his rage dimming to shock. I could only muster up the memory of his face as he drove away, and his middle finger jutting up out of his fist. I could tell the pack leader was trying to muffle his anger, though it really wasn't the best attempt. He'd better be punished. If he didn't pay for this whole thing, I'd just have to make him regret it myself. _'Calm down, Collin. You need to focus on where you are, so we can find you.'_ We? There was only two people right now. Just goes to show how much my pack valued me. _'They were at the party. It might take a minute.'_ Right, party. I was interrupting it.

Then, one by one, more thoughts joined his, all wondering what big emergency had caused Sam to put a stop to their fun. Then, as they slowly realized what had happened, they grew quiet. After what seemed like hours of agony, but in reality was probably only about ten minutes, everyone was there. Well, everyone except Brady. He'd probably realized what was going on by now, and had been smart enough to stay out of my head. Part of me, though, wondered if he even cared. _'He does. He just.. he's scared, I guess.'_ It was Seth, he was always trying to cheer someone up.

_'Sorry, bud, not gonna work.'_ I tried to find a bright side to this, but the only thing I could come up with was that with everything hurting, what happened with Brenna was out of my head._ 'Shit._' Well, not anymore. I shielded my thoughts as best I could, and managed to focus on my leg for long enough to make whatever might have slipped out disappear. I'd tell them, but on my own time.

_'So you were with Brenna? Really, Collin?'_ Sam was obviously as mad as Brady had been. The whole pack had to suffer when one of us got caught up with a girl. The same had happened with Paul and Rachel, Quil and Claire, Kayne and Mel, pretty much everyone except for Sam with Emily and Jake with Nesse. As a pack leader, you pretty much had to put everyone else first. But if it was her life or ours, I'd bet anything that they'd save her. '_Not true, necessarily,'_ Sam thought with reluctance,_ 'Unlike some people, I know where my priorities lie.'_

I tried to come up with some sort of retort, but unfortunately, I didn't have it in me. If they didn't find me soon, well, it's not something I wanted to think about. _'I just left Seattle..' _I couldn't even manage to get the second part of what I was trying to think out before my head hit the ground, and I was out cold.

* * *

**hey there! I know I haven't updated this story in forever, but my sister's been on my back about writing more ever since she read it, so I decided to continue with it. (: I know it's pretty short, but it's a start. I've already started on the next one, so it should be up within the next week or so. thanks for reading!!**

**oh, and review review review! they keep me going. :]  
**


End file.
